


Ultimatum

by BreakingNow



Category: Vampyr (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Geoffrey's pissed, Jonathan doesn't care, McReid if you're trying to squint, otherwise it's just good ol' rivalry, past non-con vampirism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-31
Updated: 2020-03-31
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:40:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,320
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23405443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BreakingNow/pseuds/BreakingNow
Summary: Geoffrey isn't expecting to run into anyone as he makes his rounds through Stonebridge Cemetery, and it's none other than Doctor Jonathan Reid who appears to prove himself a thorn in the hunter's side.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 23





	Ultimatum

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I think it goes without saying that I don't own Vampyr or any of the characters.

All was quiet as Geoffrey paced his way through Stonebridge Cemetery, the place incredibly vacant now that night had long since fallen. Overcast skies prevent the moon’s light from shining down on him as he walked, but he could see just fine in the dark nonetheless. The air around him was cold, but he needn’t pay that any mind anymore; his long, woolen overcoat was now only useful for keeping up a charade. He concentrated on his surroundings as he went, his hand never leaving the hilt of the sword at his side, a precaution that was drilled into him when he was young. He listened to his steady footfalls; the slight breeze rustling through the tall, dead grass; and the few stragglers late returning to their homes. The place, fittingly, felt dead, and Geoffrey wondered for a moment whether or not his presence added to the heavy eeriness that surrounded the many headstones.

The epidemic had devastated his home at an alarming speed and had even caught Geoffrey up in its terror. The blood he carried was now ice in his veins and, as much as he despised it, he had to acknowledge that he was now in a far better position than he was before. It could’ve been him buried six feet under the dirt he walked on after that agonizing night of blood, fever, and insufferable pain. He shook the thought away. No, Reid had done a very thorough job in making sure that Geoffrey hadn't succumbed to the bestial disease, but in saving him from becoming a beast, the doctor had made him into a monster. Geoffrey scowled. Part of him would've preferred he had been left to become an unrecognizable shell of himself destined to be gunned down by his own brothers in arms rather than being turned into what he hated most and swore to destroy: a vampire. Damn the doctor, but had he left him for dead there would only be more chaos to bathe the streets in innocent blood. It was better this way. He had to keep telling himself that. Geoffrey gripped his sword hilt tighter when a shadow played at the edge of his vision. He had been so caught up in his thoughts that he hadn't noticed he was being watched from the sidelines. He whipped his head to face him, his fangs showing from behind a sneer.

“Reid.” He snapped, aggression playing at the fringes of his voice. Jonathan didn’t react. His pale face and posture held relaxed as he stepped towards Geoffrey until only a few strides separated them, his hands concealed in the pockets of his own dark gray coat. Geoffrey eyed him suspiciously.

“A fine night isn’t it, McCullum?”

“Cut the niceties, leech! You have a lot of balls showing up here after what you pulled!” Geoffrey’s grip turned white-knuckled on his sword. Jonathan shrugged.

“And yet you keep that sword of yours sheathed instead of delivering me to my end. You probably could kill me, if you wanted to. But you won't.” 

Geoffrey growled at this, he hated that the doctor was right. He couldn’t kill him, not right now. There was still too much he didn’t yet know, too many questions that only Jonathan would answer.

“What do you want, Reid?”

“As to the point as always, I see.” Jonathan ran a casual hand through his black undercut, an action that seemed almost condescending to Geoffrey and his attempts to intimidate the elder Ekon. “I request that you reduce the number of your squads stationed near the hospital. Pembroke is more full of fragile conditions than it ever has been since the epidemic, and the unnecessary troops prowling around the place are putting my patients on edge.”

“And whose fault is that?” Geoffrey quipped, narrowing his gaze on the raven, “The Guard of Priwen is sworn to protect the people against the scourge of vampires. How on edge do you think your patients would be if they knew it was a blood-sucker who tended to them in their most vulnerable states?” Jonathan’s jaw tensed. Geoffrey smiled. _Finally_ , he thought, _a reaction_. The doctor breathed to reign in his composure.

“And how do you think your men would feel if they knew they were taking orders from the very scourge they’ve sworn to eliminate?”

Geoffrey involuntarily flinched at the retort, mentally kicking himself for allowing Reid to turn his words and drive them so close to home. “Besides,” Jonathan continued with a satisfied smirk, “I have sworn to protect the people just as you and your dogs have, as a doctor I cannot and will not refuse medical treatment to those in need of it. Not even to you.” 

Geoffrey’s mind flashed back to that night of horror. Searing pain in his shoulder, flesh shredded by an insatiable Skal. The nauseous smell of blood hanging in the air. The burning of the sickness making its way through his veins to his erratic heart. The dizziness and the dark clouds threatening to blind his vision. Overtake him. Drag him into the dark. The faded echo of a familiar voice calling his name. That same voice hardened, calling him now back to reality. “Call off your mutts so I can do my job.” This time it wasn’t a request, it was an order.

Another growl rose in Geoffrey’s throat. His patience with Jonathan Reid was quickly tiring and it was only a short matter of time before it snapped completely. He grew more and more irritated with the other man the longer he remained calm and in control when Geoffrey was trying so hard to provoke Jonathan’s wrath. He hated that he had been robbed of his humanity against his will, and hated even more that the one who robbed him of it was so unconcerned about what his actions had meant for the brunet. The Guard of Priwen; his brothers, his men; were still unaware of the change in their commanding officer, but it was only a matter of time before they sniffed it out. Geoffrey had trained them well, after all. Despite his newfound immortality, he had come to terms that his days were numbered. Geoffrey met Jonathan’s blue eyes with nothing but cold malice and hatred. “I don’t take orders from leeches.” he drawled through clenched teeth.

Before he knew it, Jonathan had closed the distance between them, grasping the lapels of Geoffrey's coat in a tight hold. Geoffrey hissed and bared his fangs in warning, but it went unheeded. He struggled to push him off. “Listen here, McCullum! I’m going to give you an ultimatum: you call your dogs home while you still have dogs to call. I’m being nice right now, so don’t continue to test me.”

Geoffrey is shoved back and stumbles to keep his balance. He hadn’t thought it was possible, but Reid had just succeeded in pissing him off further. The heat of rage boiled in his chest and his eyes burned venom into Jonathan’s, who calmly held his stare. They stood still in the cemetery like that, each stubbornly keeping eye contact with the other, as the rest of the world passed slowly around them. Geoffrey scoffed; this was something animals did, holding each other in a stare until the weaker one gave in, and every second longer he played into Jonathan’s game the more of his dignity he could feel slipping away. He supposed now that he wasn’t too far gone from being the animal that he so despised. He wasn’t going to win against the vampire tonight, not with the lives of his men being threatened. Reluctantly, Geoffrey showed his exposed neck in surrender but he held his stare for a moment longer before averting his gaze to a nearby headstone. _Sean Hampton_ , it read. He listened as Jonathan turned and walked away. “Make the right decision, McCullum.” 

And, like a shadow, he was gone.

**Author's Note:**

> I've had this in my docs for months now and it would've been a damn shame for it to never see the light of day. Who knows what else I'll post, but for now enjoy these angsty undercut fight boys. Thanks for reading! Ciao!


End file.
